"
"Then I will bear your name in future," said Alice, and Quincy thought
to himself that he wished she had said those words in response to a
question that was in his mind, but which he had decided it was not yet
time to ask her. He was too much of a gentleman to refer in a joking
manner to the words which Alice had spoken and which had been uttered
with no thought or idea that they bore a double meaning.
Quincy wrote the selected name in the blank space in Leopold's letter,
sealed it and took his mail out to the carriage driver, who was seated
in the kitchen enjoying a piece of mince pie and a mug of cider which
Mandy had given him.
As Quincy entered the kitchen he heard Mandy say, "How is 'Bias
nowadays?"
"Oh, dad's all right," said the young man; "he is going to run Wallace
Stackpole again for tax collector against Obadiah Strout."
"Is your name Smith?" asked Quincy, advancing with the letters in his
hand.
"Yes," replied the young man, "my name is Abbott Smith. My dad's name is
'Bias; he is pretty well known 'round these parts."
"I have heard of him," said Quincy, "and I wish to see him and Mr.
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